Splash
by Alece
Summary: One-Shot. Takes place the night of the Haunted Star re-opening.


He was going to attend the opening; I didn't need Leyla to tell me she had overheard him talking to Nikolas about the opening

So I sat down to write the challenge and this is what happened. I realized once I'd finished it that it didn't really belong in the challenge area. I'm pretty proud of it for the following reasons:

1. I never just sit down and write something out of the blue like this (so I would really like to know what you think!

2. I don't usually write in first person but I thought for a challenge I would challenge myself too!

I think this is a one-shot but I might be persuaded to continue …

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He was going to attend the opening; I didn't need Leyla to tell me she had overheard him talking to Nikolas about the opening. "He's one of the financial backers, he's probably required to be there," I told her in an offhand sort of way as I reorganized the hastily filed charts at the 5th floor Nurse's Hub.

"Are you going with Nikolas?" I had hoped she would drop the subject. So the Haunted Star was reopening with much fanfare and speculation by the citizens of Port Charles, so what?

"Who says I need a date to go?" I inquired incredulously. She must have noticed the eyebrow I had raised in her direction because Leyla lifted her hands in defeat – one was holding a chart – and backed out of the Hub, commenting as she retreated, "It was just a question."

It was not just a question. It was a question stated in such a way as to hint at much more than the tentative camaraderie the Russian prince and I had shared during his hallucinations. The connection we had forged from our similar loses had fled once Nikolas had rededicated himself to his son, leaving me to look elsewhere for a possible relationship.

The man I now found myself interested in had spent the time I had wasted on a patient to find someone else who caught his fancy; someone who appreciated the attention if not who it was coming from.

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After a crash course in basic casino practices, I headed to toward the docks where the Haunted Star was moored on feet already sore. Nursing did not prepare a woman's feet for the pain that was stiletto heels. Immediately upon reaching the pier I took a seat upon one vacant bench with a sigh, "How could my making any sort of impression be worth this kind of torture?" I muttered to myself, allowing myself to rest against the back of the bench. "At least I'll make an entrance."

"Isn't that what they call being fashionably late?" I craned my neck to the left as his footfalls finally reach my ears. My eyes followed him as he descended the stairs behind the bench I sat on. My eyes caught his for a brief moment before I made a disgruntled noise and looked down as I stood up on the death traps people had the nerve to call shoes, "Gosh, I knew there was a reason I needed to care about fashion."

The slight grin that emerged upon hearing my tone shifted into smirk territory as he took the opportunity presented by my smoothing the invisible creases from the skirt of my dress, his eyes burning a path across my skin whether it was visible to him or not.

I had spent time picking which dress I owned but had never worn to wear that night. The confirmation from Leyla only made me put extra thought into the decision. The white fabric offset what little tan I had taken time for the previous week and the green pattern gave the dress character. I had gone for a fresh face and an up-do was practical for the close quarters of the casino floor – it had been easy after my long day at work too.

Once I had gained my footing, my gaze shifted from my shoes to his. At the end of my perusal mine were the eyes that were caught by his – only they had changed. They had become darker and, although I would've doubted the possibility before, more intense. Neither of us blinked. Unused to the scrutiny, I wetted my lips and somehow my bottom lip found its way between my teeth. Noticing the way his gaze followed my actions, the pressure on my lip increased.

He cleared his throat, reaching up to run a finger between his shirt collar and the bronze skin of his neck. I moved back toward the bench where my purse lay abandoned. Picking it up I turned to find his eyes following my movement, I allowed a slight smirk to become visible on my visage as I walked in the direction of the floating casino. I waited until our shoulders barely brushed before focus on him again.

We stood for a moment, staring across our shoulders at one another. Moving his head slightly he indicated the Haunted Star behind him while he slowly brought himself around to face it. I felt the warmth coming from where his left hand had come to hover over the small of my back and a similar heat came to my cheeks as he leaned in. His breath was hot against my ear as his hand came in full contact with the fabric covering my lower back, and the invitation he issued was irresistible.

"Let's make a splash, shall we?"


End file.
